The Mandrake Root Or La Mangola

1001 Words3 Pages

Comedy in literary works is not used merely as a form of entertainment. Oftentimes, authors employ the use of comedy to present social criticisms in a particular society during a given timeframe. This is proven true in The Mandrake Root or La Mandragola, a satirical play written by Italian philosopher Niccoló Machiavelli. In this comedy, the playwright relates his views on certain ideas to a seemingly ordinary life: Callimaco, a young man, is attracted to whom he deems the most beautiful young woman he has ever laid his eyes on, Lucrezia, who is married to an older man named Nicia. Due to his growing lust, Callimaco agrees to carry out a plan devised by Ligurio, a Machiavellian figure, to access Lucrezia. Through his use of humor, wit, and …show more content…

Every character in this play is driven by desire. Lord Nicia desires a son, and Callimaco has a strong desire for Lucrezia. Even Siro desires something: to please his Master. In order to obtain what they want, they stop at nothing. They take the necessary actions to ensure that they will get what they want. Friar Timoteo justifies the actions of his character by saying, “I console myself with this: when something matters to a lot of people, a lot of people take care” (Machiavelli 105). Machiavelli makes the point that human beings possess some level of self-interest as motivation for all their actions. Machiavelli stops at nothing to prove this point. He uses extreme examples like killing a lover and paying a priest to show the audience that humans stop at absolutely nothing to get what they really want. The motives of each character guides them throughout the play. Lucrezia appeared to be the only “innocent” character up until the end of the play. Once she gets a taste of what it is like to have a young lover, she establishes a relationship with Callimaco. Machiavelli reveals a scary truth; at the core, humans are self-interested. Machiavelli reveals that all actions evoke a certain feeling from its source. This means that it is not possible for an act to truly be deemed “selfless” because all acts bring some sense of gratification to the person performing them (Bondanella).

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